A History of Horror: Frankenstein Goes to Hollywood (2010)
This first episode of the Mick Gatiss' series starts off in the early years as the narrator and host talks about Lon Chaney, the Universal horror movies, items like FREAKS and then the rebirth of the genre thanks to a re-release of FRANKENSTEIN and KING KONG. From here the documentary jumps to the Val Lewton productions like CAT PEOPLE and THE LEOPARD MAN.
If you're familiar with anything Gatiss has done then you know he doesn't give you the "history" of the subject but instead the history to him. This is why stuff like KING OF THE ZOMBIES isn't mentioned. For the most part this is a highly entertaining documentary thanks in large part to the interviews. Sara Karloff shows off her personal collection, which was great to look at. There's also footage of Lon Chaney's make-up case, which was another major bonus. Carla Laemmle is also here and we get the final interview that was done with Gloria Stuart before she passed away. These interviews alone make this a must see.
Episode: A-
This first episode of the Mick Gatiss' series starts off in the early years as the narrator and host talks about Lon Chaney, the Universal horror movies, items like FREAKS and then the rebirth of the genre thanks to a re-release of FRANKENSTEIN and KING KONG. From here the documentary jumps to the Val Lewton productions like CAT PEOPLE and THE LEOPARD MAN.
If you're familiar with anything Gatiss has done then you know he doesn't give you the "history" of the subject but instead the history to him. This is why stuff like KING OF THE ZOMBIES isn't mentioned. For the most part this is a highly entertaining documentary thanks in large part to the interviews. Sara Karloff shows off her personal collection, which was great to look at. There's also footage of Lon Chaney's make-up case, which was another major bonus. Carla Laemmle is also here and we get the final interview that was done with Gloria Stuart before she passed away. These interviews alone make this a must see.
Episode: A-
